Mac Martin

Born William Colleran on April, 26, 1925 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, bluegrass artist Mac Martin has been a top-notch picker and crooner since the late 1940s. A traditionalist in the vein of <a href="spotify:artist:4UEb5ZsSyDWMAiBuOeKA6W">Lester Flatt</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:5CWbfANRpZbnxdstzcNg5H">Bill Monroe</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:4fMhmL6pvw61o0C1z8Bdib">Ralph Stanley</a>, Martin spent his formative years basking in the warm glow of the radio, soaking in as much music as he could from Wheeling, Virginia's WWVA and Nashville's WSM, the latter of which was responsible for airing The Grand Ole Opry. He formed the Pike County Boys at the end of the '40s, a high and lonesome bluegrass trio that also included fiddle player Bill Higgins and bass player Bill Wagner. He formed a new trio called the Dixie Travelers in 1957, this time with fiddler Mike Carson and banjo player Billy Bryant. The Travelers continued to perform and record well into the early 21st century, with the majority of the material being released and eventually reissued via <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Rural+Rhythm+Records%22">Rural Rhythm Records</a>. ~ James Christopher Monger, Rovi